Washing device, including jet means for circulating the articles being washed



WASHING DEVICE, INCLUDING JET MEANS FOR CIRCULATING T HE ARTICLES BEINGWASHED Richard R. Walton, Boston, Mass., assignor to Walton WashingMachine Corporation, Boston, Mass., a corporation of MassachusettsApplication `lanuary 8, 1954, Serial No. 402,965

Claims. (Cl. 68-184) My invention relates to washing machines, includingdevices for treating pliable fabrics with liquids -of various kinds.More particularly, it concerns a new and improved device of the typedescribed employing primarily the force of jets of liquid to circulateand wash the :articles of clothing or treat the fabric with the liquid.

Most washing machines now on the market operate on one of twoprinciples. There are those of the tumbling type, in which the articlesare tumbled in a revolving cylinder and there are those of theconventional agitator type, including a tub with la paddle type agitatorin the center, oscillating :about a vertical axis. Both types haveadvantages and disadvantages which are at this time rather well-known.In the tumbling type of washer, Iall of the clothes are acted upon, butthe action is rough and the articles of clothing tend to become tangled.The washing action performed by the tumbling type of washer is by nomeans ideal. On the other hand, the agitator type of washers, while theytend to be more gentle, nevertheless in most of them the clothes are notcirculated sutlicientlypso that all of them come in contact with thescrubbing member. From researches conducted in the washing of articlesof clothing, sheets, towels, etc., it has been found that the mosteffective action is perhaps performed by the hands of the handlaundress, the suds being squeezed through the clothes and the clothesexed and rubbed simultaneously. So far as I am aware, no washing machinenow on the market approaches duplicating these actions.

A principal object of the present invention is, therefore, to produce awasher in which the washing action will be as efficient as possible,tending to simulate the operations on the clothing performed by a handlaundress.

It is an object :of the invention in one form thereof to provide a noveland simple portable washing unit adapted to be set in any convenientcontainer in which it will effectively perform its washing operation.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel washer of the typedescribed embodying a novel construction permitting it to be packed in aminimum of space.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel washing machinewhich will produce an effective washing action primarily by means ofliquid vcirculation in a container of any size or shape.

The invention is featured by the provision of a unit, preferablyportable, comprising a generally cylindrical vertically arranged hollowbody provided with a series of openings in its cylindrical surface andmounting means for holding the same stationary in a predeterminedposition in a tub or basin. The hollow body is provided vvith a centralopening at one end which, when the device is set in the tub, is belowthe liquid level, and, mounted on the hollow body and with its intakecommunicating with the central opening therein, is a centrifugalimpeller and a housing therefor. The housing is provided with at leastone nozzle providing a jet 2,770,123 Patented Nov. 13, 1956 directedinto the body of liquid at an angle to the vertical. Preferably thishousing is mounted yabove the hollow body and there are rseveral nozzlesdirected downwardly and routwardly into the container and preferablySurmounting this housing is a motor, the impeller being connected to thedrive shaft of the motor and being driven thereby. Preferably themounting means which supports the hollow body comprises a generallycircular hollow member attached to the base lof the hollow body andhaving one or more openings communicating into the hollow body. The baseof the mounting is preferably provided with an annular Irubber ring and,during operation of the impeller, the liquid within the hollow mountingtends to be drawn into the hollow body, thus causing 'a suction effectwhich holds the machine against accidental upsetting in the tub duringoperation. The operation of the impeller draws the liquid through theopenings in the hollow body and expels the same outwardly into thecontainer through the generally downwardly directed jets. The ow ofliquid through the openings into the hollow body and the action of thejets carries the articles in a generally toroidal fashion, producing ailexing, squeezing 'and rubbing action thereon.

Still further objects, features and advantages of the invention willbecome apparent from the following vdetailed description of a preferredembodiment thereof taken in connection with the accompanying drawings inwhich like numerals refer to like parts in the several views and inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a portable washer embodying theinvention shown standing in a suitable container; and

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic sectional view on a reduced scale of a plortionof the washer taken on line 2--2 of Fig. l showing the mode of liquidcirculation in the tub.

The numeral 10 denotes Ia container or tub of any convenient size orshape, the size or shape being unimportant so far as concerns theprinciple of operation of the novel washing machine of the invention.Standing y.on the bottom of the tub is the washer of the invention,indicated generally by the numeral 12. The washer comprises a suitableelectric motor 14 pnovided with a convenient carrying handle 16 and witha suitable extension cord 18 to permit the 'same to be plugged into aconvenient electrical outlet. Held to the bottom of the motor housing is'a casing 20 fastening thereto by means fof machine screws 22. The motorshaft 24 extends downwatrdly into the housing 2t) and through apartition'26 therein and into a chamber 28 formed by downwardlydepending portions of the housing 20 for accommodating the centrifugalimpeller 30. The impeller 30 is keyed to the bottom end iof the shaft 24and heldin place tightly by means of a machine screw 32. Portions of thecasing 20 are fo'rmed into downwardly and outwardly directed conduits 34to which are connected by means of machine screws 36 nozzles 38. Stillfurther portions of the housing 20 recurve to form a centrally aperturedplate portion 40 whose central yopening 42 is directly beneath,

tached by any suitable means to a generally cylindricalhlollow member44.

The hollow member 44 is provided with a plurality of openings 46 whichpermit entry of the liquid held in the tub 10. The hollow member 44 isfurther provided with a bottom plate 48, which may be a recurvingportion of the cylindrical side wall thereof, and to this bottom plate43 by means of a bolt 50 and a wing nut 52, a hollow base S4 is firmlyattached. The bottom 48 ofthe hollow body 44 and the top portion 56 ofthe base member 54 are provided with aligned openings 58 and`i`59 in anannular series surrounding the bolt 50. The hollow mounting member 54 isprovided along its lower rim 60 with an annular ring 62, having adownwardly facing groove 64. The ring 62 is formed of rubber or othersuitable material and supports the washer on the bottom of the tub 10,as will hereinafter be explained, assisting when the machine is runningto prevent accidental upsetting.

The hollow base member 54 is especially adapted for being removed andreattached in a Vreversed position, as indicated by the broken lines inFig. l, permitting an adjustment with substantial reduction in the sizeof the washer to facilitate transportation and packing thereof while atthe same time protecting the jets 38 against accidental displacement andclosing most of the openings 46 against the entry of dust and dirt. Thisreversal is effected by taking off the wing nut 52, removing the hollowbase member 54, turning it over and replacing it in inverted positionwith the rubber ring 62 facing upwardly. The annular groove 64 is solocated as to receive therewithin and protect the nozzles 38 when thebase is reversed in this manner while the cylindrical walls of the base54 effectively cover the openings 46.

The mode of operation of the novel washer, according to the inventionwill now be explained. The washing and circulating action is inducedprimarily by a combination of a radially inwardly directed ow of liquidtoward and through the openings 46, produced as hereinafter explained,and a series of downwardly and somewhat outwardly directed strong jetsof liquid emitted by the nozzles '38, as indicated generally by thearrows in the two views of the drawings. Operation of the centrifugalimpeller 30, it will be observed, draws liquid upwardly through theopening 42 tending to exhaust the liquid from within the hollow member44. At the same time it tends to draw liquid upwardly through theopenings 58 and 59, thus reducing the pressure within the hollow basemember 54 and causing a suction eiect tending to seal the rubber ring 62against the bottom of the tub 10. The output of the impeller 30 leadsthrough the conduits 34 to the nozzles 38 and since the impeller is ofsubstantial size and capacity, strong jets of liquid are emitted fromthe l nozzles 38 downwardly and angled somewhat radially outwardly inthe tub 10. These strong jets, in this case six in number, indicated bythe heavy arrows in both Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, gradually diminish inintensity as they circulate past the bottom of the tub and upwardlyalong the side wall. The combination of liquid and articles beingwashed, therefore, tends to take on a toroidal motion as indicated bythe arrows in broken lines to the right of the machine as seen inFig. 1. ln addition, liquid drawn from within the hollow member 44 isreplaced by liquid flowing radially inwardly through all the openings46. This subsidiary motion tends to draw the articles toward the hollowmember 44 and these articles will be rubbed against the outer surface ofthe member 44 during the washing operation.

As seen most clearly in Fig. 2, the inwardly directed currents of liquidtend to rush toward the exterior of the member 44 at locations betweenthe nozzles 38. Thus, in addition to the toroidal flow as observed inFig. 1, there are radially inwardly owing currents in between each ofthe jets emitted by the nozzles 38.

The circulation of the articles being washed is such as to presentsuccessive areas of each article to a rubbing action against the member44, tangling is avoided, and the operation is gentle but, nevertheless,effective.

The novel washer of the invention is particularly adapted for embodimentin portable form, as shown. The space which it occupies during packingand transportation is minimized by the reversing feature of the hollowbase 54 which also serves to keep the machine clean. Since the ow ofliquid toward the hollow member 44 will take place irrespective of sizeor shape of the container,

washed will take place whether the machine be used in bath tub, washtub, or small hand basin.

A special advantage resides in the creation of lowered pressure withinthe base 54 during operation of the machine, thus tending to hold themachine rmly against accidental upsetting even in tubs or containersWhose' bottom surface is not flat.

While the novel washer according to the invention has special advantagesin portable form, it will be appreciated that it is possible to embodythe novel washing mechanism in a so-called integrated washing machinewith selfcontained tub, pumps for filling and emptying, etc. Therefore,I do not intend to confine the invention to portable washing machines assuch. Furthermore, while a specific embodiment of the invention has beenillustrated and described as applied to a clothes washing machine, itwill also be appreciated that the same may be useful for agitating orcirculating pliable materials in liquid treating solutions of variouskinds. Therefore, the invention is not limited to domestic or commercialclothes washing machines, but embraces any use which may be made of themechanism herein shown and described. i

I claim:

1. A washing device for use in a tub to contain liquid and articles tobe washed, comprising, in combination, an elongated stationary hollowmember, the side walls thereof forming an external article engagingsurface, a base member upon which said hollow member is mounted, saidbase member being adapted to support said hollow member in said tub inspaced relation to the bottom thereof and in upright fashion so thatsaid surface is generally vertically arranged, said hollow member beingopen at the upper end thereof and being provided over substantially theentire immersed portion of said side walls with a multiplicity ofopenings communicating with its interior, said device including meanssealing off the bottom of said hollow member from communication with theliquid contained in said tub, pump means mounted on the upper end ofsaid hollow member with its intake in communication with the open end ofthe latter for withdrawing liquid from within said hollow member,conduit means connected in communication with the output of said pumpmeans, and at least one nozzle mounted externally of and near the upperend of said hollow member and in communication with said conduit means,said nozzle being directed downwardly at an angle into said tub,operation of said pump means 'causing liquid from the tub to pourinwardly through said openings to replace the withdrawn liquid and atthe same time to carry the articles towards said hollow member and pressportions of the articles against said article engaging surface, saidliquid being expelled from said nozzle in the form of a strong jet forcausing circulation in a generally toroidal fashion within said tub ofsaid liquid and any articles carried therein.

2. A device in accordance with claim 1 in which said base is also hollowand said hollow member and said base are provided withintercommunicating openings, the lower rim of said base being providedwith an annular sealing ring adapted to rest on the bottom of the tub,whereby the action of said pump means tends to reduce the pressurewithin said base member thereby causing it to adhere to the bottom ofthe tub by atmospheric pressure.

3. A device in accordance with claim l which is provided with aplurality of nozzles spaced symmetrically about the top of said hollowmember and said pump means comprises a centrifugal impeller, said devicein cluding an electric motor mounted above said conduit means andimpeller in driving connection to said impeller.

4. A device in accordance with claim 2 including means detachablyinterconnecting said hollow member and said base member and in whichsaid base member is so proportioned and arranged that it may be removedand reattached to said hollow member in inverted form, the walls.effective circulation and agitation of the articles being 'I5 thereofbeing so dimensioned that when so reattached said base member willsubstantially surround and protect said hollow member for packing andtransportation of said device.

5. A washing device for use in a tub to contain liquid and articles tobe washed, comprising, in combination, a stationary generallycylindrical hollow member, the cylindrical wall thereof forming anexternal article engaging surface, a hollow base member mounting saidrst named member in spaced relation to the bottom of said tub in uprightfashion so that said surface is generally vertically arranged, saidcylindrical member having a substantial opening at the upper end thereofand being provided over substantially the whole of the immersed portionof its said cylindrical wall with a multiplicity of liquid admittingports, an impeller mounted on the upper end of said cylindrical memberwith its intake in communication with said opening for withdrawingliquid from within said hollow member, a motor mounted on said device indriving connection to said impeller, and a plurality of nozzles mountedexternally of and near the upper end of said hollow member and incommunication with the output of said impeller, said nozzles beingdirected downwardly at an angle into said tub, operation of said pumpmeans causing liquid from the tub to pour inwardly of said ports toreplace the withdrawn liquid and at the same time to carry the articlestowards said hollow member and press portions of the articles againstsaid article engaging surface, said liquid being expelled from saidnozzles in the form of strong jets for causing circulation in agenerally toroidal fashion within said tub of said liquid and anyarticles carried therein, said cylindrical member and said base beingprovided with intercommunicating openings and the lower rim of said basebeing provided with an annular sealing ring adapted to rest on thebottom of the tub, the action of said impeller tending to reduce thepressure within said base member thereby causing it to adhere to thebottom of said tub by atmospheric pressure.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS764,613 Moreland July 12, 1904 1,529,770 Cavanaugh Mar. 17, 19251,673,594 Schmidt June 12, 1928 1,926,446 Klosson Sept. 12, 19332,042,372 Watson May 26, 1936 2,114,547 Sollinger Apr. 19, 19382,278,075 Hecht Mar. 31, 1942 2,430,769 Hutchinson Nov. 11, 19472,439,469 Husted Apr. 13, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS 504,634 Belgium July 31,1951

